Oo-Topos (Picture/Text Adventure)
Compatibility: 64K Apple II series
Requirements: One disk drive, 128K and double hires optional
by Jeff Hurlburt
Unbeknownst to Earth, an interstellar carrier has been zapped by meteors and now an enormous life-extinguishing cloud of transfusion waste is headed towards the planet. You've been hired by the Space Ecological society to deliver the seeds of a neutralizing compound and are well on your way when alien space pirate types ground your ship on a rock named "Oo-Topos" and toss you into a cell. Unless you can escape and deliver the goods in time, there will be some very red faces at the next S.E.S. convention-- even if there are no complaints from Earth!
In Penguin's "Oo-Topos" busting out of a crackerbox cell proves to be the least of your problems. Even staying out is easy, since most of the pirates are off with the fleet on a raid. Unhappily, your trusty Astro series spacer is not just parked downstairs, waiting and ready. It's 'out there' somewhere, untroubled by rust in Oo-Topos's tangy ammonia atmosphere; and, wouldn't you know, somebody has tossed your spacesuit down a garbage chute! Not that you're going anywhere until the tractor beam pinning your craft to this rock is turned off and certain vital components, scattered around the base, have been recovered and reinstalled. Otherwise, except for poison gas and radiation hazards, aliens which are invisible unless you can find the proper goggles, and an ever alert robot sentinel...; well, it's smooth sailing!
Winning Oo-Topos is chiefly a matter of cracking many small puzzles and good mapping. The latter poses special difficulties since, until you find a light, several rooms are dark; and the only access to at least one key area is via a maze-like system of five-way transfer tubes. Granted, knowing how to get somewhere quickly is merely a convenience for most of the adventure. However, once the inevitable fleet recall signal is broadcast, a good map is worth its weight in vegan silver. While there are relatively few fatal traps per se, with many little puzzlets and numerous items to locate and use correctly, it is easy to make fatal errors. The game's super efficient, three-position save/restore feature proved a great aid for mapping and solution testing.
A solid, mid-level challenge, "Oo-Topos" is one of an all too rare breed: a text-input adventure which doesn't exceed the capabilities of its parsing. Penguin's respected "Comprehend" parser fits the game like a glove; so you will seldom, if ever, find yourself unable to try out a promising idea. Add exceptional artwork optionally available in double hires, and the result is a package approaching the mythical "Infocom with pictures" standard. Clever and often humorous, if you are ready to save the Earth, "Oo-Topos" is the fun way to do it!
Available from Penguin: P.O. Box 311, Geneva, IL 60134. (312) 232-1984. $17.95
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